by Sharon Dunn
“Sorry I made that noise. I just wish you’d reconsider what you’re doing here,” Isabel said.
Nick stomped back into the doorway. “No one betrays me and gets away with it. You stay in this cabin while I drive away.” He lifted the gun and pointed it at her. “Don’t try to follow me.”
Jason pressed against the cabin wall, waiting for the sound of Nick’s retreating footsteps. A long heavy silence followed. Nick halted.
“You win,” said Isabel.
The answer must have satisfied Nick because he stomped away. Jason hurried around the side of the cabin. Nick was still in view with his back to the cabin. Isabel’s footsteps pounded inside the cabin.
Nick spun around. Jason shrank back along the side wall, hoping he hadn’t been spotted.
“I said stay in there. Go sit in a corner,” Nick said. His voice filled with rage.
Nick must be able to see Isabel through the glassless windows.
Isabel’s light footfall padded on the wood floor of the cabin.
Jason pressed against the wall, unable to gauge where Nick was at. The guy had almost a sixth sense for when he was under threat. Jason needed to wait, but if they waited too long, they would miss their ride out of here.
He peered out from the side of the cabin. Nick was nowhere in sight. The trees hid the view of the truck.
He dashed to the front of the cabin and stuck his head in the door. “Hurry.”
She ran toward him. He reached a hand out for her.
Through the trees, the sound of the diesel truck starting up reached them. Isabel seemed to understand the plan without his having to explain. If they couldn’t get under that tarp without being spotted, they would both freeze out here.
He slipped behind a tree.
Nick would take a few minutes to let the engine warm up before taking off down the road. They’d have to jump in once the truck was rolling and Nick’s focus was on his driving.
The grind of gears shifting reached Jason’s ears. He ran out toward the tailgate. The truck couldn’t be going faster than five miles an hour. Still, it was a challenge to climb over the tailgate quietly. He reached out a hand for Isabel, who struggled to run in her sheepskin slippers. She leaped and got a foothold on the bumper, then piled in. Glancing over his shoulder to a view of the back of Nick’s head, Jason lifted the tarp and they rolled under it. He drew her close so they were completely covered.
She was shivering. He unzipped his coat, drew her to his chest and wrapped the coat around her.
He listened to the rumbling of the truck motor. Her soft hair brushed his chin as her shivering subsided.
“Are your feet cold?”
“Some. The sheepskin lining is pretty warm,” she whispered.
He prayed Nick would stop at a gas station soon. Somewhere public so they could slip out before Nick noticed the extra lumps beside his toolbox underneath the tarp.
“Jason, one of the agents is dirty. That’s how Nick found the safe house.”
“Really?” Not Michael, surely not Michael. Yet they couldn’t take a chance until they knew for sure. They were on their own for now.
The truck continued to rumble on, though the change in pitch of the rolling tires told him the road had gone from snow packed to paved. They must be getting close to something.
The truck slowed and the road changed again. Judging from the sound the tires made, they might be on dirt. Finally, Nick braked and turned off the engine. The truck door eased open and slammed shut. Jason didn’t hear any retreating footsteps.
Jason tensed, fearing they’d been spotted beneath the tarp.
Isabel gasped. She pressed closer to him.
Tension covered them like a shroud as they lay still, clinging to each other and praying.
The vague padding of footsteps in snow pressed on his ears. He remained still, not even daring to breathe yet.
When he could hear no more noise, he rolled free of Isabel, turned over and lifted the tarp just enough to see above the edge of the truck. Isabel scooted beside him to watch, as well. They were parked in what was in the summertime a recreation area with picnic tables, playground equipment and a lake. But this time of year, it was completely abandoned.
Nick had walked less than twelve feet away from the truck, too close for them to risk climbing out. The closest hiding place was a cluster of bare bushes by the lake.
Nick’s back was to them. He checked something on his phone and peered toward the road as if waiting for someone. A car appeared around the curve leading into the parking lot. It stopped, and Nick walked toward it as a woman in a uniform, maybe a maid’s, got out. She handed Nick an envelope.
Now was their chance, while Nick was distracted. Isabel followed as Jason crawled under the tarp to the far side of the truck away from Nick.
Jason slipped out from beneath the tarp. He was exposed for only a second as he swung his leg over the side of the truck and crouched down. As Isabel did the same, Jason could hear the car starting up and speeding out of the snowy parking lot.
Nick got into his truck and started it up. The motor ran for several minutes warming up while both of them crouched close to the passenger side. Isabel rested her hand on Jason’s back. They’d be seen if they made a run for it now.
If Nick pulled out and didn’t look back, they’d have a chance.
Jason’s gaze darted from the picnic table to the bushes a little farther away.
The truck eased forward. Heart racing, Jason glued his gaze to the back of Nick’s head. Even the slightest movement meant they were dead.
Isabel dashed toward the picnic table. Nick’s head tilted as though he were checking his rearview mirror. His truck continued to roll forward.
Jason froze. He was exposed, but movement might alarm Nick, as well. The truck reached the edge of the parking lot.
Isabel crouched on the far side of the picnic table, which didn’t entirely conceal her. She was probably cold again. It wasn’t that far back to the edge of town, but it would be an arduous journey for her dressed the way she was.
Nick’s truck rumbled as it pulled out onto the road.
Jason raced toward the picnic table. The truck disappeared around the curve.
He reached Isabel. “There’s a hiking trail on the other side of the lake. Houses at the end of it.”
They sprinted through the snow. He was grateful it was only a few inches deep.
They both heard the rumble of the diesel truck at the same time.
Nick had turned around and was headed straight for them. His big truck lumbered over the barriers in the parking lot and bore down on them.
They edged toward the frozen lake, running along the bank. Nick’s truck turned around. The driver’s-side window rolled down.
Jason caught the glint of metal just before the first shot was fired. He stepped out onto the frozen lake. The ice looked thick and solid. Across was the fastest way to get to the trailhead and the shelter of the trees there. He knew the lake was solid. Kids played hockey on it.
Nick got out of his truck and fired several more shots.
Isabel reached for Jason’s hand. The ice cracked around her where a shot was fired.
“Hurry.” He could see the trailhead not more than twenty yards away. Nick fired another shot.
An eerie quiet descended around them, their feet tapping on the ice the only noise. He looked over his shoulder. Nick was headed back up the bank toward his truck. Probably to swing around to the road to try to catch them on the trailhead before they could get to a house.
They came to the edge of the lake. “We’ll have to cut through the trees. He’ll be waiting for us at the end of the trailhead.”
The trees were more like tall bare bushes. Within minutes, the menacing sound of the diesel truck reached Jason’s ears. Would Nick come in after them or just wait for
them to emerge?
The brush became thick and hard to navigate through.
“We can’t go back.” Isabel’s whisper filled with panic.
The bright colors of Jason’s coat would be easy enough to see if Nick chose to come in after them.
“Get low,” Jason whispered as he squeezed between two bushes. They worked their way through the labyrinth of bare branches and brush.
When he lifted his head, he saw smoke rising up through the air. Someone’s woodstove.
The brush ended at the edge of a property. A small cottage-like house with a barn beside it was a welcome sight.
Isabel let out a breath. “We made it.” She rushed toward the door and knocked.
Jason stood beside her. “We’ll get warmed up and I’ll call a friend to come get us. I don’t think we should go back to my place or yours.”
She cast her gaze downward. “I’m sure Nick or whoever he works for will have people watching.”
A woman of about forty opened the door. She was short and round with granny glasses. She held a coffee cup in her hand. Her expression changed from confused to fearful as her eyes grew wide. “Can I help you?”
“Please,” Isabel said. “I know this looks crazy.” She touched her robe. “It’s a long story. We just need to get warmed up and use your phone.”
“I can have a friend here to pick us up in ten minutes,” Jason said, hoping to allay the woman’s understandable wariness.
The woman’s gaze traveled from Isabel to Jason and then back to Isabel. “Okay, come in and sit by the fire.”
Jason glanced from side to side, not seeing any sign of Nick or his truck. That didn’t mean they were in the clear. Nick knew they were both alive. Sooner or later he’d come for them.
* * *
Though the woman at the house had grabbed a blanket for Isabel to wrap around herself, it felt like the cold had sunk down into her bones, and she would never be warm again.
Pulling the curtains to one side, Jason watched out the window. He stepped back and paced the floor. “The man I called is not connected to the Bureau in any way. He’s a family friend.”
If she wasn’t so exhausted from running and being cold, she might be just as agitated. She drew the blanket around her shoulders.
Despair sank even deeper into her bones than the cold, down to the marrow. She was tired, hungry and scared. They couldn’t count on help from the Bureau until the turncoat was outed. She couldn’t go back to her cozy apartment.
The woman brought Isabel a steaming cup of coffee. “Here you go, dear.”
“Thank you so much for your kindness,” Isabel said.
“We’ll be out of your hair in a few minutes,” Jason said. “My friend doesn’t live too far from here.”
The woman nodded and disappeared into the kitchen.
Jason peered out the window again. He whirled around, swinging his hand up and down. “Get out of view.”
Isabel jumped up. Her coffee splashed in the cup as she moved away from the window and stood beside Jason.
“His truck went by. Going real slow.”
So Nick was trolling the neighborhood looking for them. “We can go to the police and tell them we’re being stalked. They’ll pick Nick up.”
“That’s a short-term solution. They’ll hold him for a few hours and then someone from the organization will bail him out,” Jason said. “I can’t tell the police anything about the investigation.”
She leaned close to Jason, touching his upper arm. The desperation of their situation sank in. They really were in this alone together.
Outside in the driveway, a car pulled up and flashed its lights three times.
Jason took Isabel’s hand. “That’s the signal. Let’s go.”
Isabel put her nearly full cup of coffee on a side table and yelled a hasty thank-you to the kind woman in the kitchen. They hurried outside into the overcast gray of late afternoon. This time of year it got dark around five o’clock. They had been on the run all day.
The friend turned out to be an older man, balding and broad through the shoulders. Jason got into the front seat and Isabel slipped into the back, but not before a quick glance around. She saw no other vehicles.
As the driver backed up, Jason turned sideways. “Isabel, this is Fred. He used to be a cop and a friend of my father’s.”
“Pleased to meet you.” The formality felt odd considering the threat they were under. There’s always time for manners. The thought was almost sarcastic.
Fred nodded.
“Can you set us up with a place to sleep and food and maybe a car after we are rested?”
Jason seemed to have come up with some kind of plan. Right now, all she could think about was food, rest and getting warmed up.
“Can do,” said Fred.
Isabel glanced over her shoulder, expecting to spot the black truck. She saw only the dark road. This part of town didn’t have streetlamps.
Fred took them to a tiny apartment on the second floor of an apartment building. The living room and kitchen were tidy but very impersonal. No photographs or pictures. There was a display case with antique handguns in it and a rack on the wall that held several fishing poles.
“You should be able to find something to eat.” Fred kept his boots and coat on while Isabel and Jason took off theirs. “I’ll run some errands. Get her some clothes. Sleep where you’re comfortable. I’ll wake you in a bit.” He looked at Isabel. “What size do you wear?”
“Eight.”
After Fred left, Isabel opened the refrigerator and several cupboards, looking for inspiration. “Guess it’s my turn to cook since you did breakfast.”
Their time at the safe house felt like eons ago. For a brief moment, she had caught her breath, felt safe. But she hadn’t been safe, and neither was her heart. The sting of Jason’s rejection still felt raw.
Jason stood beside her, staring at the contents of the cupboard. “Lots of bachelor food.”
“So tomato soup it is. There’s a loaf of bread here. If there’s cheese in the refrigerator, we can have some grilled cheese sandwiches too.”
They worked together to make the meal. Jason buttered bread and sliced cheese while she heated the grill and stirred the soup. Again, she was struck by the contradiction of what they were doing. If anyone were to observe the scene, it would be a picture of domestic bliss, just a couple working together to make a meal.
But the whole thing was a lie. They weren’t safe, and they weren’t going to be together when this was all over...if it was ever over.
Metal scraped against metal when she stirred the soup. The sound set her teeth on edge. She put the spoon down on a paper towel by the stove. Maybe it wasn’t the noise that bothered her but that reality that was rapidly sinking in. They were together for now only because they had to be. The Bureau couldn’t protect them.
Jason flipped over the sandwiches as an uncomfortable silence settled between them.
She had to say the words that were on the tip of her tongue since their car ride over here. “So it sounds like you have a plan. You want to use one of Fred’s cars for some reason.”
Jason lifted the sandwiches off the grill. “Nick is in contact with the guy who set this whole thing up. We can’t depend on the Bureau for help. What if we follow Nick and he leads us to the kingpin? Since someone in this field office would leak information that could cost us our lives, we can get the information to a different field office.”
“If Nick was behind bars, if the mastermind was caught, then I wouldn’t have to go into witness protection. I could have my life back.” Would it still be a life without Jason?
Jason’s blue-eyed gaze rested on her. He nodded slowly as if thinking about what she had said. “Yes, that might be the case.”
His features softened and she wondered if he was thinking about
the kiss. Did it mean anything to him at all?
She found some bowls and poured the soup into them. He carried over the sandwiches on a single plate and sat down at the table opposite her.
“Do you know where Nick lives?”
“I’m not sure. He might stay with his aunt Phoebe. I know where she lives. She’s the only relative who has anything to do with him.”
He took a bite of sandwich. “Then we start the surveillance there.”
“Do you think the Bureau is still watching Nick?”
Jason shrugged. “Michael said they would have to lie low with the investigation for a while. Plus, that’s how Nick figured out we were onto him. So I would guess not.”
“The agents must be looking for us, wondering about us?”
“Unless the mole told them some lie about us, that we were dead or that we were the turncoats.”
Isabel dipped her spoon into the soup. The meal had always been good comfort food when she was a kid. A neighbor lady who felt sorry for her made it, but right now she could barely taste the soup.
The plan was risky. What if Nick figured out he was being followed? Their future was filled with so much uncertainty. The potential to end up dead was huge.
She took in a breath and shifted in her chair. “I guess that’s what we have to do.”
Jason placed his hand over hers. “I wish it could be some other way.”
His touch brought back the memory of the kiss. She pulled her hand away as a barb shot straight through her heart. Did he feel anything at all for her?
“I know it’s really dangerous. I wish there was a way for you to be safe and to have your life back.”
“I’m afraid. Can we pray?” Whatever happened to them, God would always be with her.
He nodded. “We should have done that a long time ago.”
Jason bowed his head and she folded her hands and closed her eyes, as well.
She started. “Lord, we need Your guidance and protection. Please help us to bring Nick and this other man to justice.”
After a second of silence, Jason said, “We are both really afraid. Would You show us the right course of action?”
She lifted her head and looked across the table at Jason.
